Saudi Arabia confirms death of journalist, Jamal Khashoggi and 18 top officials have been detained

Saudi Arabia has just announced that Jamal Khashoggi, the dissident Saudi journalist who disappeared in Istanbul more than two weeks ago, is dead.

Eighteen Saudi officials have been arrested and are being investigated in connection with the case, according to a statement released through state-run media.

In the statement, the kingdom’s public prosecutor said that an investigation had found that an argument broke out between Khashoggi and men who met him inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2nd, leading to “a fistfight that led to his death.”

Turkish officials have said that Khashoggi was killed and dismembered inside the consulate by a team of 15 Saudi agents who had flown in to meet him. His body has yet to be found.